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HC gives green signal to Gurgaon metro project
Mirchpur Violence |
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Mining in Karnal village has been halted, HC told
Sirsa varsity gets its own calendar
Kalpana’s sister recalls her love for environment
SC admits Bishnoi’s petition on SEZ
Power staff to hold protest on Feb 2
Man shoots wife, 2 sons
Man sets 78-yr-old mother ablaze
Surajkund Crafts Mela begins today
Artistes from Uzbekistan in Faridabad on
Monday. Tribune photo: Manas Ranjan Bhui
Killer son gets life imprisonment
Minor’s Rape
Officials’ arrest condemned
3 Sirsa villages to have gas agencies
Wheat bags looted from govt godown
5 killed in road mishaps
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HC gives green signal to Gurgaon metro project
Chandigarh, January 31 The High Court has upheld the action of HUDA in taking over and developing green belts and roads from various licencees. The 6.1 km-long metro project had hit a roadblock on November 1 last year after the High Court directed the State of Haryana and other parties to maintain the status quo, while issuing notice of motion on the petition filed by some members of the National Media Centre Cooperative Building Society, comprising “mostly journalist and academicians”. The petitioners had challenged “the use of green belt for any other purpose except the green belt” on several grounds, including the plea that the maintenance is to be done by the local authority and the Director, Town and Country Planning was “not the competent authority” to “permit the use of the area in the manner it is being done”. After hearing the arguments on the petition, Justice Ranjit Singh has held: “To urge that this land or part of the same could not be transferred to the government would be totally misconceived and misplaced”. Justice Ranjit Singh referred to the undertaking, “whereby the society had undertaken to transfer this land free of cost to the government or the local authority” and added if the society had any grievance, “it should have been done at the time of grant of licence or at the time when the society was required to give this undertaking”. In his detailed order, Justice Ranjit Singh took note of the final development plan of Gurgaon-Manesar, which says: “The green belt shown along sector/arterial roads shall be primarily meant for the widening of the sector/arterial road in future. However, till such time the widening of road does not take place, the said area may be utilised for nursery/plantations, fuel filling stations, communication lines, utility services etc with the prior approval of the Director.” Justice Ranjit Singh added: “This rail system is meant for the entire town and would advance the interest of public at large. The society apparently is thinking in a self-centered manner, which is rightly termed as myopic. “The petitioner-society is raising all such frivolous objections and the issue, when viewed in the proper perspective, would show that only a strip of 2.5 metres in width, out of 50 metres of the green space, is going to be utilised and that too not in entirety but of a diameter of the size of a pillar meant to have an RMRG on an elevated platform”. Referring to some photographs “indicating the present state of this green belt”, Justice Ranjit Singh observed: “If this is the state of the green belt, which is in a shambles, then it cannot be termed green, in any manner. “It is full of dirt, where cars are seen parked. Heavy transmission lines are shown erected in the space, which is being referred as green belt. A pillar to construct to elevate metro rail system is not going to make any difference to the use of this negligible area of the green belt. “The interest of some members of the society, even if any, must yield before the larger public interest…. The other societies, which were having a green belt along this route, have not raised any objection. “It is only the petitioner-society, which is having interest in an area of 130 metres in length that it has come forward to raise this challenge. The non-serious nature of this challenge can be made out from the fact that counsel appearing for the society had submitted in the course of his argument that the land, if so needed, should be acquired and compensation paid to the society. Obviously, the society is not having any serious intention to preserve this area as a green belt. “There is no merit found in the petition. The larger public interest has to outweigh the minor and negligible non-existent interest of society, which clearly has come to an end and, thus, must yield before larger public interest. The writ petition is accordingly dismissed”. The metro will reduce air pollution by reducing traffic on arterial routes and sector roads, leading to an estimated reduction of 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. The project is to be completed within two-and-a-half years. |
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Ensure rule of law or face drastic action, SC to state
R Sedhuraman Legal Correspondent
New Delhi, January 31 A Bench comprising Justices GS Singhvi and AK Ganguly also directed the state government and the Railways to file within two weeks affidavits giving the estimated loss suffered by them due to damage caused to their respective properties during the 11-day agitation. The government’s affidavit should be filed by the Chief Secretary, the court said. Haryana’s Advocate-General Hawa Singh Hooda and Additional AG Manjit Singh Dalal contended that the 11-day “dharna” by people from various communities had been “peaceful”. At this, the Bench said no “dharna” could be allowed on the railway tracks. “Tomorrow, there may be a dharna outside the Supreme Court and you may not be allowed to enter the court,” the Bench remarked and asked whether such things could be justified. Quoting a report, Justice Singhvi said the Railways alone had suffered a loss of Rs 200 crore. “You are absolutely helpless as far as we see,” he told the state government. “The court cannot tolerate this persistent attitude of any community denying the basic right of other communities to live. Please mark our words. The court cannot be a mute spectator to the show of muscle power at the cost of Constitutional principles. Unless, the rule of law prevails, this court will take drastic steps the kind of which not seen so far. Muscle cannot prevail over rule of law. This is our clear message to your government,” Justice Ganguly remarked. Recalling a similar agitation witnessed in Rajasthan, the Bench said the governments behaved as if they were subservient to the agitators. No group with muscle power should be allowed to “hold any part of the country to ransom,” the Judges observed. The Bench also clarified that the Chief Secretary should mention the steps taken by the state government for ensuring that nobody was able to obstruct the free flow of rail and road traffic. The Bench also directed the Registrar-cum-Secretary of the Inquiry Commission, appointed by the state government to go into the April 21, 2010, attack on the Dalits, to file an affidavit within two weeks detailing the procedure adopted by the commission for issuing bailable warrants against one Satyawan, a witness, for failing to respond to summons. “If things are like this, people will have no faith in the commission,” the Bench said. At one stage, Justice Singhvi quoted news reports on the agitation to question the state government as to whether members of a particular community had in the last few days started “using strong arm tactics to browbeat the government”. According to reports from Haryana, the protesters had been demanding a fresh probe into the Mirchpur violence by a special investigation team (SIT).
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Mining in Karnal village has been halted, HC told
Chandigarh, January 31 The Bench of acting Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Augustine George Masih was informed that the lease and licence for the mining activity granted to a company had also been “closed”. The assertion came on a bunch of three petitions by Ishwar Singh and other respondents against the State of Haryana. Taking up the petition, the Bench asserted: “These three writ petitions pertain to illegal mining in Harsinghpura village in Karnal district, which the petitioners allege is going on without any check or control. Hence, appropriate directions to stop such illegal mining have been sought for in the writ petitions. “Additional Advocate-General, Haryana, on instructions received, has submitted that pursuant to the orders dated April 5, 2006, passed in a civil writ petition of 2004, all mining activities in Harsinghpura village have been brought to a close including the lease/licence for such mining which was granted to one Balwant Singh Subhash and Company for the period from April 28, 2004, to March 31, 2009. “In view of the statement that all the mining activities in Harsinghpura village have been brought to a close in terms of the orders passed by this court, we do not consider it necessary to adjourn the case to formally take on record the written statement of the authority concerned to the effect. Rather, we are of the view that all writ petitions under consideration should be closed in terms of the statement made on behalf of the State of Haryana. “We, therefore, order accordingly with liberty to the petitioners to move the DC, Karnal, in the event there is any mining activity going on or if undertaken in village Harsinghpura. The DC, on being so approached, will enforce the orders of this court... If any application raising a claim for compensation have been filed, the same be dealt with in accordance with law by the DC concerned within six months”.
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Sirsa varsity gets its own calendar
Sirsa, January 31
Dr Manoj Siwach, Registrar, said the council also approved the new score card system for direct recruitment of assistant professors and lecturers. Under the new system, out of a total of 100 marks, 50 marks would be kept for research work, 25 for conceptual clarity and subject knowledge, five for teaching experience and skills and 20 for the interview.The council also gave its final approval to the PhD Ordinance after receiving suggestions from the Deans of various faculties. As per the ordinance, candidates passing the national eligibility test (NET) would be exempted from the entrance test for PhD and those with MPhil from course work as well as the entrance test. The council gave its approval to the publication of the Haryana Economic Journal “Kautilya” by the Economics Department. Dr Priyanka Siwach, Associate Professor, Biotechnology, and Amit Sangwan, Assistant Professor, Mass Communication, were made members of the council. Dr Anu Shukla, Dr Sultan Singh, Dr Suresh Gahlawat, Dr Parveen Agamkar, Dr Ashok Malik, Dr Brij Pal Singh, Dr Aseem Miglani and Dr Vikram Singh were among those who attended the meeting.
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Kalpana’s sister recalls her love for environment
Sirsa, January 31 Her concern for environment and wildlife is evident from the email she sent to her elder sister Sunita Chaudhary, financial adviser in the Swiss Embassy, New Delhi, on November 30, 2002, two months before her demise. The mail reads: “My Dear Pikksu Didi, while reading Matthiessen's Tigers in Snow (the last couple of days), I came across Wildlife Protection Society of India. It was founded by Valmiki Thappar, Brenda Wright, Bittu Sehgal, and Ullas Karanth. You have probably seen books and videos that this tremendous group has produced. Their dedication is immense and infectious. Lets spread it.” The email carries the details of the website and other information about the society and a request that the receipt of a gift donated by Sunita to the society, whether monetary of voluntary work, be sent to her which she would regard as gift. “Please do not fall into the trap of buying yet another gift for me at some store. Instead, gift to the society yet again. It would please me immeasurably,” says Montu (Kalpana Chawla) in her email. Sunita regrets not paying heed to Kalpana’s request before leaving for the US on January 12 to be with Kaplana at the time of launch of the Columbia on January 16, 2003. The association of old students of Punjab Engineering College is organising a function in Delhi tomorrow to commemorate her eighth death anniversary. Kalpana’s father B LChawla will present awards to outstanding women on the occasion. |
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SC admits Bishnoi’s petition on SEZ
New Delhi, January 31 A Bench comprising Justices DK Jain and HL Dattu posted the petition and other similar petitions relating to various SEZs across the country for final hearing in April. In October 2005, Haryana had agreed in principle to set up the SEZ in collaboration with the Mukesh Ambani-led RIL, while the HSIIDC and RIL signed an MoU for the purpose in December that year. It had been agreed that the SEZ would be spread over an area of 25,000 acres in Gurgaon and Jhajjar and would involve an investment of nearly Rs 25,000 crore. The progress of the project was impeded by the global recession and in 2008 RIL put the SEZ on hold. In 2009, the state government asked RIL to think in terms of setting up a series of SEZs of the size of 2,500 acres each rather than going for two SEZs of 12,500 acres each. Bishnoi and the farmers have sought the prevailing market prices for their land required for the SEZ.
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Power staff to hold protest on Feb 2
Rohtak, January 31 Spokesperson for the Joint Action Committee of all employees’ union of the Power Department, including the All-Haryana Power Workers Union, Subhash Lamba claimed here today that the strike was the last resort left for the employees of the department in wake of the cold shoulder given by the state government and no interest shown by it towards implementing several demands which were accepted by the government at a meeting held in Chandigarh on August 23, last year. The meeting was held in the presence of the Power Minister and the Finance Minister of the state and the authorities had admitted that at least 11 of the demands put by the employees union were justified and the representatives were told that the demands would be implemented within a period of two months. Alleging that the government has been providing no satisfactory response over the delay, he said the JAC had been left with no other option than to go on strike. He said the union might step up the stir in the near future if the government failed to act in due course. The union had announced a two-day mass leave on August 25 and 26 last year, but the government in order to get the programme cancelled had agreed to accept the demands.
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Man shoots wife, 2 sons
Yamunanagar, January 31 The incident took place after some altercation among the family members. Sources said Saravjit had a heated argument with his 21-year-old son Kuldip. In a fit of rage, Saravjit took out his licensed gun and shot dead his sons Kuldip (21) and Gurtar (26), and his wife Sukhwinder Kaur (42). Sarabjit’s son Gurtar is married. However, his wife was away to her parents’ place when the crime took place. The lone daughter of Saravjit is married. Saravjit later called up his brother, Balwinder Singh, who stays nearby, and informed him about the incident. Balwinder informed the police, which reached the spot. Saravjit surrendered before the police. Police sources said Kuldip’s body was found in a pool of blood on the bed while the other two bodies were lying on the floor. The police has registered a case and taken Saravjit into custody. The bodies of the three victims have been sent to the Yamunanagar Civil Hospital for postmortem. Sources said the incident took place after an altercation took place between Saravjit and his younger son Kuldip Singh on some issue. Saravjit picked up his licensed gun and trained it on Kuldip. When his wife and elder son tried to intervene, he also shot both of them. The sources said Saravjit, a leading landlord of the village, had told the police that he was not having good relations with his younger son. |
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Man sets 78-yr-old mother ablaze
Sonepat, January 31 The police said the accused was addicted to drugs and liquor and had strained relations with the family members. SHO Chandvir Singh of the Gohana police station said from the circumstantial evidence gathered from the crime scene, it appeared that the woman had been killed in cold blood. She died on the spot. He said a case under Section 302 of the IPC had been registered against Raj Kumar, who had been arrested and would be produced in the court tomorrow. The SHO said villagers informed the police that Raj’s wife had left him a while ago as he refused to give up his drinking habit. The body was shifted to the mortuary of the Civil Hospital for a postmortem.
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Surajkund Crafts Mela begins today
Surajkund, January 31 Minister for Tourisim, Haryana, Om Prakash Jain said on the occasion of the silver jubilee of the Surajkund Mela, a special commemorative stamp would be released by the Department of Posts. On the domestic front, 27 states and unions territories are participating in the mela. Jain said this time the mela area had been increased by seven acres. The number of “work huts” had also been increased from 394 to 525. The parking area for visitors had also been increased. One more chaupal (open air stage) for cultural performances has been added. According to officials, 596 craftsmen/weavers will take part in the mela.
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Killer son gets life imprisonment
Jhajjar, January 31 After committing the crime, Naresh along with his kin fled from the spot. The cause behind the murder was stated to be domestic dispute over ancestral property. Sonepat: The body of Rahul (4), son of Roshan of Bilandha Garhi village, was found in the fields of nearby Naathupura village today. The police suspected that the child had been sodomised before being killed and later his body was dumped in the fields. The child went missing last evening when he was playing outside his house. The police took the body to the Civil Hospital for a postmortem. Earlier, family members had launched a hunt to locate the missing child. They, however, spotted the child’s body in the fields and informed the police.
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Policemen quiz centre staff
Tribune News Service
Karnal, January 31 The police had arrested the main accused, Ajay, chowkidar of the centre for hearing and speech impaired, who has been sent to two days’ police custody. The police has also questioned some functionaries of the centre. The police is also questioning Usha and Asha, both attendants at the Centre, to identify those who allegedly paid for the abortion of the girl. SP Rakesh Arya said once the people involved in the abortion of the girl were identified, a case would be registered against them.
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Officials’ arrest condemned
Panipat, January 31 President of the Haryana Power Engineers Association RS Dahiya said the association had already put up a request with the state government that a thorough probe should be conducted before proceeding against the two engineers. He said the association had also demanded that Shyam Enterprises, on whose complaint the vigilance team had trapped the two engineers, be immediately blacklisted for not depositing the EPF and ESI of its employees. Power engineers of theHVPN have already lodged a complaint against Shaym Enterprises. |
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3 Sirsa villages to have gas agencies
Sirsa, January 31 Sirsa MP Ashok Tanwar announced this while addressing mediapersons here today. He said each of these three agencies would provide 1,000 LPG connections. Tanwar said under the Sakshar Bharat Mission, a literacy drive would be launched in the Sirsa, Fatehabad and Narwana areas of his parliamentary constituency to educate people in the age group of 15-35 years. He said 365 districts had been identified in the country, including three districts of the Sirsa parliamentary constituency, under the scheme.
— TNS |
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Wheat bags looted from govt godown
Hisar, January 31 According to the watchmen on duty, at least 12 persons came to the godown in a tractor-trailer past midnight. They overpowered the three watchmen and a watchwoman and tied them up with ropes. All were dumped near a heap of chaff. The looters then loaded 150 bags of wheat onto the trailer. Before leaving, they took away the watchwoman’s gold ornaments and the mobile phones and cycles of the watchmen. The police has registered a case and investigations are on. Hansi town and its surrounding villages have seen a spurt in crime during the past few months.
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Jhajjar, January 31 The first accident took place near Yakubpur village on the Gurgaon road here when a truck reportedly collided head-on with a Balero jeep coming from the opposite direction. Three occupants of the jeep reportedly died on the spot while two others sustained serious injuries. In another incident, two youths, who were going to Kalanaur on a motorbike, were killed when they were hit by a vehicle. — OC
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Panipat, January 31
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The Rail Metro Rapid Gurgaon (RMRG) project, which is to connect Gurgaon residents with the Delhi metro, is back on track.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has dismissed a petition against the use of a green belt for the project. It has held that larger public interest has to outweigh interests of a building
society.
Sirsa, January 31
All preparations are in place for the 25th Surajkund Crafts Mela, which begins tomorrow. The mela has Andhra Pradesh as the theme state.
One of the salient features of the mela, organised annually under the aegis of the Ministry of Tourism,
Haryana, is that Uzbekistan will participate in it for the first time.
